Around August 8, 1865

In this day and age, newspapers rarely print fiction. Of course, there is the occasional magical story written by a third grade class that appears every once a week in the Arts and Entertainment section of the paper, but for the most part, fictional stories of real substance are not published in newspapers anymore. This was not the case in the 1800's. Appearing in The Valley Star each week was...

On August 8, 1865, the Montgomery Advertiser warned its readers to look out for cholera. The article went on to say that it is reported in a state paper, that several well defined cases of cholera have appeared in New York City, and that each resulted fatally. We are no alarmists, but what can prevent terrible fatality, if disease in epidemic form should appear in our beautiful city? The houses...

Four months after the end of the Civil War, Edwin Ware leaned down and signed an oath of loyalty to the United States government, swearing his support and protection of the constitution and union of the states, including the recently emancipated slaves. The former slave owner was the 2,560th person in Greenville, South Carolina to complete such an oath. Ware had effectively signed over...

Many people today know about the battles and outcomes of the American Civil War, but not many know about the nurses that provided care to soldiers during and after battles. In Nashville, Tennessee in 1864, a picture was taken that depicts the common nurse during the American Civil War. The picture depicts many stories and experiences nurses had during the American Civil War as it shows the setting...

On an August morning in Montgomery, Alabama, an elderly African-American woman found a seat in one of Montgomery's principal churches and waited for the service to begin. While she waited, however, she was...politely told that accommodations were prepared for her in another part of the building. The lady moved off quietly and took her place in the gallery. In an article in the Montgomery Advertiser...

President Lincoln’s use of telegrams revealed a man ahead of the 1860s technological times. He is recognized as an innovator, communicator, and commander of the telegraph. Lincoln has been named writer of war, micromanager, and technophile. After analyzing a small collection of 10 telegrams dated from April 5, 1864 to February 15, 1865 one may question the argument...

On July 22, 1865, in Charleston, South Carolina, a man by the pen-name of Juhl wrote an editorial in the Charleston Courier describing many elements of city life in the post-Civil War period. The writer's real name was Reverend Julius J. Fleming, a prominent and outspoken citizen of Charleston widely respected for his roles as a preparatory school principal, a Methodist preacher,...

On a Georgia night in June of 1865, three federal soldiers sought out treasure and ended up wounded or dead. The soldiers had heard rumors of the great wealth of Georgia cotton planters. Now, with a freedman guide leading them to the house of Robert Paul where the ex-slave insisted they would find 15,000 in gold and silver, the soldiers hoped to seize a piece of that fortune for themselves.

The Union military of which President Lincoln was Commander and Chief was much different than our military today. Upper officer ranks were extremely politicized and often hard for Presidents to control. A major area where Union officers’ political ambitions were apparent was in the recruitment of black soldiers to fight against the South.

The Siege of Petersburg began when the Union General Ulysses S. Grant moved his target from Richmond to Petersburg. The Confederate soldiers successfully defended against the first attack, on June 9th in which the Union army, with 5,000 troops, made a desperate attempt' to capture Petersburg. During this initial attack, some of the best citizens of Petersburg' were wounded...